Shaping the structures and staffing for the future

The Board of Trustees of the Montan-Stiftung-Saar trust has appointed Jonathan Weber as Managing Director, Chief Operating Officer, of SHS – Stahl-Holding-Saar GmbH & Co. KGaA and as a member of the Board of Management of Aktien-Gesellschaft der Dillinger Hüttenwerke and Saarstahl AG, effective 1 April 2021. He will assume the newly established cross-divisional “Transformation” function and will drive forward the implementation of the transformation. This carries with it the responsibility to continue developing the future-oriented program of Saarland’s steel industry which ensures a result-oriented target portfolio that includes new business models as well as a competitive internal set-up, especially with regard to costs and processes.

“We are pleased that with Jonathan Weber, we have been able to gain a manager with strong implementation skills who, thanks to his diverse skills and experience, will be able to expedite the necessary transformation of Saarland’s steel industry. With this we are creating a new role and a new function that will significantly facilitate further development of our companies in strategic and financial terms,” said Reinhard Störmer, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Montan-Stiftung-Saar. “From the perspective of the foundation, it is essential, especially now, to successfully manage these difficult times for the steel industry in Germany and in Europe with new ideas and drive. We are confident we have found the right man in Jonathan Weber for this transformation of our companies. Our aim is to rapidly improve our competitiveness and to establish the outstanding products from Saarstahl and Dillinger among the world leaders in the long term. The new Transformation department, with Mr. Weber as its central driving force, is expected to contribute decisively to this.”

Mr. Weber said of his new role: “I want to thank the Board of Trustees of Montan-Stiftung-Saar for showing great confidence in me. I am eager to work with our team on all relevant issues and thus to leverage the full potential of our long-established companies. We will consistently advance development of the commercial operations of Saarstahl and Dillinger and thus ensure that the steel industry in the Saar region will have a good future.”

Karl-Ulrich Köhler, CEO of SHS, DHS, Dillinger and Saarstahl, sees significant strengthening of Saarland’s steel industry in the future alignment and positioning: “The management and members of the Board of Management of SHS and of Saarstahl and Dillinger will be working intensively to improve the performance of our companies, together with our excellent team, in all areas. We want to accomplish the turnaround quickly, effectively and permanently! I want to achieve this together with the new Board of Management team. The new cross-divisional department, with Mr. Weber at the helm, will act to support the other departments as we continue our transformation efforts, significantly influencing future developments.”

Personal details:

Jonathan Weber, 40, has been Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of the Electrical Steel business unit of thyssenkrupp’s Steel division since 2019. After completing his studies in business administration at the University of Mannheim, he began his professional career in the strategy/M&A department of Salzgitter AG. He moved in 2012 to the thyssenkrupp Group, where he held various management positions including several years as Head of Strategy for the Steel division.

About the Montan-Stiftung-Saar trust

Montan-Stiftung-Saar is the owner of SHS - Stahl-Holding-Saar GmbH & Co KGaA. It is thus the indirect owner of Saarstahl AG and the majority shareholder of AG der Dillinger Hüttenwerke. In addition, the Montan-Stiftung-Saar trust owns a venture company with which it participates in start-ups with new business models.

About SHS – Stahl-Holding-Saar GmbH & Co. KGaA

SHS - Stahl-Holding-Saar (formerly “SHS - Struktur-Holding-Stahl”) was established in 2010 as an operational management holding company, which has since actively taken on tasks for the Saarland steel industry. This has enabled both companies to work more closely together beyond the previously existing cooperative ventures and to have a stronger presence in their markets. They are working in unison to grow, to become more flexible and to increase competitiveness in their respective markets.

About Dillinger and Saarstahl

Dillinger is a world leader in the manufacture of steel heavy plate for the steel construction, machine manufacturing, offshore, offshore wind power and line pipe sectors. Saarstahl is a world leader in the manufacture of wire rod and bar steel for the automotive industry, the construction industry and for general machine manufacturing. Dillinger and Saarstahl belong to SHS – Stahl-Holding-Saar. More information can be found at www.dillinger.de or www.saarstahl.de.